Louisiana 20-Week Ban and Heartbeat Bills Pass Health Committee Vote

Bills that will force women to have to opt out of listening to a fetal heartbeat when receiving a forced ultrasound, and that will ban abortion after 20 weeks post fertilization based on the erroneous claim of fetal pain have moved out of the Senate Health committee, and will now be voted on by the full Louisiana senate.

The measure is based on a similar law passed in Texas last year requiring that a doctor conduct a sonogram, describe the fetus and play aloud the fetal heartbeat, whether the woman wanted to hear it or not. The law was unanimously upheld by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals after a group of doctors sued to block the law, saying it impeded their First Amendment rights and wrongly dictated how a doctor should treat their patients.

“So this bill today, before you, adds the additional feature of giving the woman the opportunity to heartbeat of her unborn child. I stress that because there seems to be a lot of distortions around giving someone the opportunity,” [Sen. Sharon Weston Broome, D-Baton Rouge] said in a House Health and Welfare committee.

“Opportunity” implies that if if she wants to hear it, the option is available. Forcing her to listen and watch is not an “opportunity” its a mandate.